Last year, the amount of solar power generated in the European Union rose to 80.2 TWh. At the same time, 9.9 GWp of photovoltaic capacity were newly installed in the EU. Compared to the global growth of PV, this was a moderate growth rate because the amount of additional PV capacity installed globally was 37 GWp. This is in spite of the fact that the production cost of solar power in parts of Europe has fallen to less than 100 € per megawatt hour.

The analysis of last year's expansion of PV in Europe and worldwide was conducted by the French consulting company EurObserv’ER. According to the recently published Photovoltaic Barometer, solar electricity is currently the least expensive in the USA. Individual companies there are already achieving prices as low as 47 to 50 USD per megawatt hour for newly-built solar parks in the 50 to 100 MWp range with 25-year service lives. However, it is important to note that taxes and lease prices for land are often lower in the USA than in Europe.

The number of additional photovoltaic systems installed in the EU in 2013 fell by 45% compared to the previous year. It is no secret that the reason for this slump is the fact that many EU Member State governments are reducing their funding for renewable energies. Solar electricity production within the EU has nevertheless now reached 80.2 TWh, which is equivalent to the total electricity production of Belgium. This may sound impressive, but it only represents 2.4% of total electricity production within the European Union.

Volker Buddensiek